My name was Lucidel.
I was a demon woman.
I was born in a boring village and lived a boring life until I had a fateful encounter.
Yes, it was with Horlan.
I saw him working at a workshop in the neighboring village, and it was a case of love at first sight.
I pursued him aggressively and somehow succeeded in wooing him, but I failed utterly when it came to persuading our parents. Both mine and his.
Well, Horlan was a fifth son, so he stood to inherit no property. I could understand why my parents opposed the match. But I had to wonder what was wrong with Horlan's parents. Since I was going out of my way to say I wanted to marry their fifth son, they should have just been grateful and approved.
Instead, they rejected us because Horlan's older brothers—the second, third, and fourth sons—were not yet married. They even tried to suggest I marry the second son instead, but I flatly refused, saying it had to be Horlan or no one.
After that, time passed aimlessly. No matter how hard I tried, nothing changed. Horlan did his best too, but we got nowhere.
Just when I was starting to think we would never be able to wed, a letter arrived from my big brother, Langhor, who had left our village years ago. It seemed that my brother had actually become quite successful. He had married and bought a large house. Since his wife was pregnant and he was struggling to manage such a big property alone, he wrote to ask for my help.
I knew immediately that this was our chance. I took Horlan with me and headed for Village Five, where my brother lived. I didn't say a word to my parents or Horlan's. They would have just tried to stop us anyway. If they didn't care enough about me to let me be happy, then they shouldn't mind me leaving. I did leave a note behind, just in case; I didn't want to cause a pointless commotion.
My parents might not have liked it, but they surely wouldn't chase me all the way to Village Five. They might have held some sway in our small village, but they were nobodies anywhere else. All that remained was to hope that the Village Head of Village Five wouldn't view us as unwanted squatters. I figured I would consult with my brother about that once we arrived. He would protect us, but I had no intention of being a burden. If they told us to leave, we would go. As long as I was with Horlan, I could survive anywhere.
Finally, I arrived at the place my brother called home.
My brother was a liar. This wasn't a village! It was a massive city! The security inspection at the entry gate was incredibly thorough, and what on earth was that Teleportation Gate? It was the single biggest shock of my life.
Then there was my brother's house. He had written that it was big and spacious, but I never imagined anything like this. What even was it? It was a bit small to be a noble's mansion, but it was far too large for a commoner. Was it the home of a city official? Did my brother build this himself? No, if he had, he would have bragged about it. That meant he had actually bought it. Such a massive house... it was incredible.
My expectations soared. He had promised me a room of my own. Back home, my "room" had been a damp, cramped corner of a storehouse. A proper room was the dream of a lifetime, especially if I could share it with Horlan. I resolved to get along with my brother's wife, no matter what kind of person she was. I wasn't going to let anyone kick me out.
It had been about ten days since I started working at my brother's house. For the time being, I was helping his wife, but my brother expected me to act as a housekeeper of sorts, so I intended to give it my all. I certainly had no complaints about the wages he offered.
My sister-in-law was a kind woman, so I didn't expect any friction there. However, as the woman of the house, I felt she was a bit of a pushover. I thought she could afford to be more assertive, but perhaps that was just because they were newly married. She was friendly with Horlan, but both she and my husband were careful to maintain a respectful distance. Even when they had to interact, they made sure I was present. It was only natural; strange rumors would only lead to misery for everyone. I was glad Horlan was such a considerate man.
Through my brother's introduction, Horlan was set to start work soon. We were relying on my brother for everything right now, but that was unavoidable. We had come here specifically to seek his help. Still, we couldn't stay dependent forever. I worried that once the baby was born and grew up, we might be asked to leave—though the house was certainly big enough. No, I couldn't be complacent. I had to work hard so that my brother would rely on me, making myself so indispensable that he wouldn't dream of letting me go.
Oh, and another thing—Horlan and I successfully reported our marriage at the church. Now, no matter who complained, we were officially husband and wife. We did it!
When I consulted my brother about leaving home in the middle of the night, he decided to send some money back to our parents. He planned to ask them to officially grant me my freedom in exchange for the payment. Since I was the only one in the family who could read and write, we couldn't settle it with a letter alone, so my brother hired an adventurer who could read to handle the delivery and the explanation.
Wait, the adventurer was going to Horlan's family too? My brother was truly going above and beyond. I could never repay him.
I also wondered if I should report my arrival to the Lord of Village Five... no, not the Lord, the Village Head. I didn't want our personal drama to cause trouble for the village. If our parents complained, would it start a war between villages? Or was the power gap so large that a fight was impossible? Would it just be a nuisance for the guards?
"I'll report it either way," my brother told me. "Just like you said, I'd rather not risk even a one-in-a-million chance of trouble."
"Are you an acquaintance of the Village Head?" I asked.
"Hahaha. I'm not that important. I'll just ask the Head of the Carpenters Guild to report the details to the Village Council."
"And we won't be kicked out for that?"
"If people were kicked out for something like that, the population of this village would drop by more than half."
"So I can really relax?"
"You can. Just make sure you work for the benefit of Village Five and don't do anything to harm it."
"Of course."
To ensure I didn't accidentally do anything harmful, I had a few more questions.
"What is it?"
"I saw a Holy Maiden at the church. Should I make a donation? What's the standard amount?"
"A donation? You should give what you can afford, when you have the leeway. No one is going to complain about the size of the amount."
"I see. That's a huge difference from back home. Also, that Holy Maiden was selling a new kind of sweet called Dango at the church shop."
"Strictly speaking, it's a shop attached to the church. Dango is popular and usually has a long line, but since you went to report your marriage, they probably let you buy some as a special gift, right?"
"Yeah. It was delicious."
"Thanks for getting some for me and my wife, too."
"Of course, it was the least I could do. But what exactly is Dango? It was my first time eating it."
"I don't actually know the details."
"You don't?"
"As long as you know it's good, that's enough, isn't it? Is that all?"
"There's more! Um, I saw a Sword Saint in the Security Team?"
"She's the real thing."
"I could tell that much."
"Why is she here? Because she wants to be, I suppose. Just like you and me."
When he put it that way, I didn't have a comeback.
"Then the Three Knights are the same?"
"The Three Knights?"
"The Silver Knight, the Bronze Knight, and the Iron Knight."
"Ah, those three. Same thing. If they ever get tired of it here, they'll leave."
"I saw them and their servants drinking at the tavern, and they looked so settled in that I doubt they're going anywhere."
"Then they won't be lonely. That's a good thing."
"And those two old men who were former Four Heavenly Kings..."
"They're advisors to the village's leaders. They're very important people."
"I figured. And speaking of important, there was also an Imperial Princess of the Elf Empire."
"She's the former Imperial Princess. Don't forget the 'former.' Also, she'll give you a look if you call her Imperial Princess."
"What about the Royal Princess?"
"She won't get annoyed, but she'll probably ask you to call her Yuri."
"Yeah, she actually said that. I thought about calling her Lady Yuri, but... well..."
"Did something happen?"
"The Lord Demon King was standing right next to her. I couldn't do anything but give a stiff smile."
"Ah, that's probably because of the baseball game."
"Baseball... that's the sport where you throw and hit a ball, right? On the Ground? The Lord Demon King is a fan?"
"No, he's the team's Director."
I just stared at him.
"Don't look at me like that. There are all sorts of people here, but the ones you mentioned rarely cause trouble in Village Five, so you don't need to be afraid."
"Even if you say that..."
"In this village, depending on the day, you'll see the Vampire Princess or the Annihilation Angel. There are also the Ancient Devils and the Age of Gods Dragon Race."
"Ah..."
"So it's no wonder the Village Head is the Legendary Nine-tailed Fox."
"Hey, now. Make sure you call her Lady Yoko. Or Lady Acting, since she's the Acting Village Head."
"Right. Lady Yoko, Lady Acting. So that means the actual Village Head is someone else?"
"Of course. He's even more important than Lady Yoko."
"I haven't seen him yet."
"Well, the Village Head is a Rare Species. It's irregular, but he sometimes runs a food stall late at night. You can see him if your timing is right."
"A food stall?"
"The food is amazing."
"N-no, that's not... I mean, he sounds very... free."
"Little sister, let me tell you one thing."
"What is it?"
"As long as the Village Head isn't doing anything dangerous, you just watch over him. If he's doing something that looks fun, you join in. That's the secret to enjoying life in Village Five."
"The secret to enjoying it... you mean I shouldn't think too hard."
"That's one way to put it. Think you can handle it?"
"I'll be fine. My common sense has already been shattered, but I'll manage."
I replied with as much confidence as I could muster. I had only been here for ten days, but Village Five was a wonderful place—incomparable to where I came from. I was determined to fit in.
Oh, one last thing.
"What's up?"
"Who is Five-kun? He was dancing with such sharp moves and he was incredibly popular."
"...You met him?"
"What? Yes, we danced together. He even shook my hand."
"I'm so jealous!"